Chapter 8.
The Ten Conditions for Becoming the Male Lead (2)
Although the bell had rung for class, three students were still sitting in the teachers’ office. The Class 8 president, Yerim, and Eunho sat in chairs, each holding a drink handed to them by the school discipline teacher.
Across from them sat the parents, looking flustered and nervously watching Yerim.
After Yerim mentioned calling the police, the atmosphere in the teachers’ office had turned icy in an instant.
At first, the parents had thought she was merely trying to scare them. But unexpectedly, Yerim was the kind of person who took immediate action. She had picked up the phone and called the police without hesitation, then summoned a lawyer shortly afterward.
What nonsense. A lawyer?
One of the parents had sneered at Yerim and Eunho, but that moment would soon become one of many they would regret.
Less than thirty minutes later, a neatly dressed lawyer appeared in the teachers’ office. He adjusted his glasses and handed out his business cards. The parents began to tremble as soon as they saw them.
“Hello. I’m the lawyer representing Moon Yerim and Bae Eunho. Let’s have a conversation.”
“W-We didn’t mean to make such a big deal out of this…”
The parents weren’t the only ones taken aback by the sudden turn of events. Eunho was also bewildered. He glanced at Yerim, who was sitting beside him.
Yerim confidently folded her arms and watched the parents speaking with the lawyer.
‘E-Eunho. The school discipline teacher wants you in the teachers’ office.’
When Eunho had first been summoned to the teachers’ office, he had been certain the teachers wanted to question him about what had happened the previous day. He had assumed he would get a scolding and that would be the end of it.
But the moment he arrived, his cheek was stinging.
‘You broke my son’s nose, didn’t you?! How dare a lowlife like you!’
One enraged parent had charged at Eunho.
Eunho looked around the teachers’ office. With the exception of the school discipline teacher, most of the teachers either looked at him with contempt or avoided meeting his eyes.
Yeah. What am I even supposed to say in a place like this?
Eunho swallowed the blood pooling in his mouth and let out a hollow laugh.
He decided it would be quicker to take the beating and get it over with.
Of course, he had crossed the line with some of his remarks along the way. But part of him even hoped this incident would lead to a disciplinary committee meeting, get him forcibly transferred to another school, and allow him to disappear somewhere nobody knew him.
At least, that was how he had felt before Yerim showed up.
Eunho, his mind in turmoil, turned his head to look at Yerim. She gently took hold of his cast-covered hand.
Without looking at him, she faced forward and murmured softly,
“Don’t let them intimidate you. You haven’t done anything wrong.”
Yerim’s words made something ache deep inside Eunho’s chest. But he didn’t want to show it, so he cleared his throat.
“So, to summarize… Bae Eunho was helping a student who was being extorted by students from another school, and when Moon Yerim tried to intervene, those students swung a wooden plank at her. Is that correct?”
“Yes. We checked and confirmed that there’s CCTV footage in the alley, so you can review it right now. There’s also an official police report. The officers coming over now were the ones who responded to the incident.”
“How can you say she was hit with a wooden plank when she’s… s-she’s clearly fine?! My son’s nose is broken!”
“My son’s jaw was dislocated!”
At the parents’ protests, Yerim rose from her seat. She then helped Eunho to his feet. Caught off guard, Eunho stood up with her and showed everyone his injured arm.
“Our guy got hurt, too, you know! This arm is right at the level of my head. You two should be thanking him. If it weren’t for him, your sons might actually be in juvenile detention right now! He practically saved their lives, and now you’re demanding compensation from him? How shameless can you be?!”
“Yerim, please calm down a little…”
“W-What? Shameless? How dare you speak to adults like that!”
“You have to act like an adult to deserve being called one! You people are supposedly educated, yet you’re saying such horrible things to a child. What was it? ‘Low life’? ‘Pathetic’? Your sons are far worse!”
“What?!”
“Ma’am, why don’t we settle this peacefully? You even struck a child. You’ve had more than enough chances to vent your anger.”
“What? Struck him?! Struuuck him?! Hey, Bae Eunho!”
As the school discipline teacher tried to restrain the parent, Yerim turned toward Eunho.
The unexpectedly mature and commanding side of Yerim caught Eunho off guard. He swallowed nervously and focused on her.
“Did they hit you?”
Under normal circumstances, he would have told her it was none of her business. Instead, Eunho found himself nodding before he even realized it.
Honestly, it would have been a lie to say he wasn’t hurt by what had happened.
The moment Yerim learned that Eunho had been hit, her expression changed completely. Now that she looked more closely, she noticed that his left cheek was slightly red.
“So you’re telling me you hit a child? You people have really gone too far!”
“What did you say?!”
“Enough! Discuss the details with my lawyer. You can file a lawsuit, too, if you want. I won’t show you any leniency!”
Once Yerim finished shouting, the situation finally began to settle down.
In the end, the parents had to call their own sons, who were still at school, and make them apologize to Yerim, Eunho, and the Class 8 president.
Watching the boys bow their trembling heads, Yerim and Eunho struggled to hold back their laughter.
Then, just as the parents were about to leave, Yerim held out her hand to stop them. She slowly shook her head.
“The parents need to apologize, too.”
“Huh? Why should we?”
Looking at the parents’ continued shamelessness, Yerim smiled in disbelief.
Eunho whispered to her that this was enough and that she should let it go, but Yerim had no intention of backing down.
She remembered her time as Young.
When she had announced that she was leaving after submitting her resignation, countless people had whispered about her, their eyes following her as she walked away.
‘If you leave like this, you’ll never be able to work in this industry again.’
‘Your life is over. What else does she think she can do if she quits this job?’
‘She’s only ruining her own life… Why ruin someone else’s life, too, just because she wants to play the hero?’
Yerim’s hand, still holding Eunho’s, began to tremble.
Eunho noticed and looked at her face. She seemed as though she might burst into tears, but Yerim lifted her head proudly and addressed the parents.
“What’s wrong with Eunho’s life? Does quitting after being an athlete mean his life is ruined? There are so many things a person can do in this world! You judged him without knowing anything and said all sorts of insulting things about him. You need to apologize. That’s defamation.”
“…”
“If you refuse to apologize, I won’t show your sons any leniency, either. Think carefully.”
“…Fine, fine! I’m sorry, student.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You hit him, too!”
“I’m sorry. I said I’m sorry, okay?”
In the end, the parents who had come to the school intending to make a scene were the ones who left after apologizing.
Once they had all left the teachers’ office, the school discipline teacher let out a deep sigh. The other teachers who had been watching the situation finally released the breaths they had been holding.
“Well, the bell has already rung, so you should head to your classrooms first. Yerim, you did a good job.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Eunho, you went through a lot, too. Go on to class.”
At the teacher’s words, Yerim, Eunho, and the Class 8 president left the office.
The Class 8 president looked at Yerim with sparkling eyes, telling her how incredibly cool she had been. Yerim squirmed with embarrassment, the corners of her mouth twitching.
“By the way, what’s your name? You’re not wearing a name tag.”
“Oh, my name’s Cheol.”
“Ohhh, Cheol? Let’s make sure to say hello whenever we see each other from now on.”
“Sure. I should get going. Eunho, thanks so much for yesterday. And you, too, Yerim.”
“Yeah.”
“Bye, Cheol.”
Yerim waved as Cheol walked away.
Meanwhile, Eunho still couldn’t shake the lingering feeling left by the parents’ apologies. His curiosity naturally turned toward Yerim.
Just who are you? How can you call a lawyer and have one show up immediately? How can you be so confident? Why are you getting angry on my behalf as though this were your own problem? What am I to you?
Before Yerim could climb the stairs, she gave Eunho, who was standing there blankly, a gentle smack on the back.
“You did well. It must have been really upsetting, huh? Rumors are like that. Don’t pay attention to them.”
“…”
“And Eunho, this might actually be a good thing. After what happened today, the other students will have a chance to see you in a different light…”
“Why are you going this far for me?”
“…Huh?”
“You keep talking about me being the protagonist and all that. I don’t even know what you mean, but do you really think someone like me could do that? I told you, didn’t I? I don’t have judo or anything else anymore. If you’re really staying by my side because of that long-term investment…”
“Long-term investment was just a joke. But Eunho, you’re asking such a pointless question. Why am I going this far for you? Obviously…”
Because you’re my favorite!
Yerim swallowed the words she truly wanted to say and looked away.
Then she turned back to Eunho and said,
“Because you haven’t done anything wrong.”
Eunho blinked at her words.
“No one has the right to insult you. You should value yourself. If you don’t value yourself, other people will notice it right away. They’re frighteningly good at picking up on that kind of thing.”
“You can only value yourself if there’s something worth valuing. Right now, I’m just… a useless person who can’t do anything.”
“Hey, you’re going to hurt your fan’s feelings.”
“Fan?”
“I told you, didn’t I? I’m your fan.”
“…”
“Whether you do judo or quit judo, once you become someone’s fan, you’re a fan forever.”
Eunho swallowed as he watched Yerim speak with such a radiant smile.
A breeze drifted in through the open hallway window. It was one of those spring days when the bitter cold of March had finally faded away.
